Human & Large Animal

Hess CSM-SC2

1. Siemens 7T MR whole body scanner. This is an ultrahigh field 7.0 Tesla actively shielded whole body MRI scanner. The magnet is a self-shielded super-conducting whole body magnet. The patient bore is 60 cm, the same size as conventional 1.5T or 3T MR scanners. The magnet is compact and lightweight for 7T standards; it weighs 24-tons. The dimensions of the magnet without covers are approximately 2.5 m in length, 2.6 m in width, and 2.65 m in height. The 5-Gauss line extends slightly further than for a 3T scanner with 5.6 m radial and 7.8 m axial dimension. A powerful whole-body gradient system provides gradient amplitude up to 70 mT/m per axis, and a maximum slew rate of up to 200 T/m/s. The RF transmit system comes with 8 parallel transmit channels; 8 individually shaped RF pulses can be prescribed simultaneously and independently in amplitude and phase.
Phase One: Initial delivery of 7T/820AS MR, will be a working 32-channel Rx 7T system with all specified electronics and applications, but with the exception of 8-channel Tx-array and 48-channel Rx receivers. A 1-channel Tx and 32- channel Rx head coil will be available. Other coils are being developed.
Phase Two: A Tim4G platform upgrade is expected to be available in 2014 along with integrated technology of 8-channel Tx-array and 48-channel Rx receivers. Integration and R&D support will be provided. In addition, a new 7T coil of 8-channel Tx and 32-channel Rx from a third party will be delivered to take full capability of the enhanced configuration.

3. Siemens MR/PET (3T) mMR. The 3T PETMR is a one of a kind fully integrated whole body PET and MRI scanner. This will allow unprecedented co-registered functional and structural acquisition simultaneously and reducing the radiation dose in PET imaging by replacing the CT scans with an MRI scan. True simultaneous acquisition of MR and PET data by a hybrid system allows merging precisely the highly sensitive PET metabolic information with the highly specific MR anatomical and functional information. We foresee new clinical MR-PET applications arising in the diagnosis of cancer, neuro-degenerative, and cardiovascular diseases. Pediatric patients will benefit from reduced radiation exposure when compared to PET-CT studies. True simultaneous acquisition of the PET and the MR data will be required to obtain the highest spatial and temporal co-registration of the MR and the PET data, to ensure optimal workflow for arriving at a cost-efficient clinical solution, and to provide maximum patient comfort. The 3T MRI system will be a whole body imaging system based on Tim architecture, capable of routine as well as advanced imaging of all body regions. The PET scanner will be fully integrated into the MR, utilizing state-of-the-art solid state technology for simultaneous PET imaging during MR image or spectrum acquisition. The 3T MR-PET will be a whole-body system designed for the purposes of oncological and neurological diagnostic imaging. The plan involves that the combined system will include IsoVolume technology that will ensure the capability for full spatial and temporal correlation between both modalities. The maximum gradient amplitude will be approximately 40 mT/m per axis, with a maximum gradient slew rate of about 200 mT/m/s per axis. The system’s magnet will have active shielding (AS) technology, including External Interference Shielding (EIS) and excellent homogeneity. The magnet will have an integrated cooling system. The shimming capabilities will include a Hybrid Shim System: Active (with three electric and five electric nonlinear linear shim channels) and passive shims for maintaining very high homogeneity and excellent image quality over a wide range of applications. Online shimming is performed using 3D shim, a patient and coil specific technique which optimizes the homogeneity for each patient in normally less than 20 seconds. The RF transmit and receive system will include a compact, air cooled tube RF amplifier providing 35 kW peak power; Integrated electronics with cabinet water cooling; Integrated circularly polarized whole body RF coil; Up to 32 receive channels. The PET system will include: Adaptation to a work environment within high magnetic fields including APD and LSO based detector technology; Adaptation and optimization of numerous MR components to an integrated PET imaging unit; High-resolution, high-count rate, positron emission tomography (PET) imaging of metabolic and physiologic processes; High quality metabolic and anatomic image registration and fusion for optimal lesion detection and identification within the body; State-of-the-art 3D PET data acquisition and analysis tools; State-of-the-art 3D PET reconstruction, attenuation and scatter correction software. Expected PET performance specifications: spatial resolution: < 6.5 mm; timing resolution: < 4.5 ns; sensitivity: > 0.5%; axial FOV: > 19 cm; transaxial FOV: up to 45 cm. The system will also have support for MR and PET gated scan acquisition; Support for list mode acquisition, offline histogramming and reconstruction; Special calibration, alignment and quality control sources including shielding; syngo MMWP Oncology Engine Premium PET (additive to MR MMWP); 3D Iterative Reconstruction.

4. Siemens Force CT. The Force is the third iteration of Siemens' dual-source CT design which features two sets of x-ray tubes and detectors for enhanced imaging of all patients, including young children, patients with renal insufficiency, and those who cannot hold their breath. Due to its low-kV imaging technique, Force broadens CT's application for patients with renal insufficiency and offers an acquisition speed of 737 mm/sec, so an entire adult chest, abdomen, and pelvis study can be done in one second with no breath-holds. In cardiac imaging, Force can obtain an entire study within one-quarter of a heart beat at a temporal resolution of 66 msec, which is the speed required to freeze the fastest-moving anatomy, such as the right coronary artery.